Perth, Oct. 19 -- Under a brooding sky at Perth Stadium, India's batting crumbled to 136 for nine in a truncated 26-over innings, only to see the hosts stroll past the target in 21.1 overs, winning by seven wickets the ODI opener. This was textbook fast-bowling domination meeting aggressive, calculated batting - a perfect illustration of why this pitch has long been a graveyard for subcontinental technique.
Winning the toss and electing to bowl was a masterstroke by Mitchell Marsh. From the first over, the Australian pacers had India on the back foot. Rohit Sharma, looking to assert himself, was undone by Josh Hazlewood's extra bounce for 8.
Then came the moment that silenced the Indian fans - Virat Kohli, chasing a wide delivery from Nit...